Trump announces meeting with North Korean dictator

President releases details of historic meeting with Kim Jong Un in bid to reach comprehensive peace deal on Korean peninsula.

David Rosenberg, 10/05/18 17:47 | updated: 18:25

Donald Trump

Reuters

President Donald Trump announced Thursday that a time and place for the historic meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un had been set, in a bid to reach a lasting agreement with the rogue state.

Just hours after three Americans held by North Korea landed in Washington early Thursday morning, President Trump tweeted that the US and Kim Jong Un’s regime had agreed on the setting and timing of the much-anticipated summer meeting, now set for June 12th in Singapore.

“The highly anticipated meeting between Kim Jong Un and myself will take place in Singapore on June 12th. We will both try to make it a very special moment for World Peace!”

At the conclusion of Pompeo’s visit, North Korea released three American citizens held by the rogue regime – a key condition to moving forward with talks, which Pyongyang hopes will lead to the end of US sanctions.

In March, the Korean leader offered to meet with the US president, culminating in Thursday’s announcement of the June summit between Trump and Kim.

Last month, South Korean President Moon Jae-in met with Kim at the Demilitarized Zone which has separated the two Korean states for more than six decades.

In recent months, North Korea has expressed a willingness to make far-reaching concessions in exchange for a comprehensive agreement ending the Korean conflict – a sudden about-face from the bellicose rhetoric emanating from Pyongyang.

U.S. officials recently said that North Korea had directly confirmed that Kim was willing to negotiate about potential denuclearization. Last week, Kim himself announced that his country would close its nuclear test site and suspend long-range missile tests.

South Korea’s President Moon credited Trump with the sudden warming of relations with North Korea, saying the US leader should be awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts.